Aeroplane structure



May 17, 1938. R. R. RAND, JR

AEROPLANE STRUCTURE 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed. Jan. 14, 1932 May17, 1938. R. R. RAND. JR

AEROPLANE STRUCTURE Original Filed Jan. 14, 1932 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 y 17,9 R. R. RAND, JR 2,117,360

AEROPLANE STRUCTURE Original Filed Ja'n. 14, 1932 4 Sheets-Sheet 5jmlenf fiun/s 71? 751/1117 J? May 1 "7, 1938,

R. R. RAND. JR

AEROPLANE STRUCTURE Original Filed Jan. 14, 1952 4 Sheets-Sheet 4' I I ll NW"? W I 1272/0750) Farms 77? ifn/w JR Patented May 17, 1938 UNITEDSTATES PATENT OFFICE Divided and this application March 13, 1935, SerialNo. 10,821

10 Claims.

This invention relates to an aeroplane and particularly to an aeroplaneof the amphibian type. The invention is furthermore particularlydirected to the landing gear of said aeroplane and the structure of thehull with which said landing gear is associated.

It is an object of this invention to provide an aeroplane which may besupported on wheels when landing on the ground and which has a hullcomprising compartments into which said wheels may be moved and saidcompartments closed by hinged doors when said aeroplane is to land uponthe water.

It is a further object of the invention to provide simple and efficientmeans for operating said doors mentioned in the preceding paragraph.

It is still another object of the invention to provide an aeroplanehaving a hull and a landing gear comprising wheels together withresilient means carrying said wheels so that said hull may beresiliently supported.

It is a further object of the invention to provide an aeroplane having ahull and a landing gear comprising wheels, said hull having compartmentsinto which said wheels are movable together with simple and efficientmeans for moving said wheels into and partially out of saidcompartments.

It is still another object of the invention to provide an aeroplanehaving a central main frame, a hull connected to and suspended from saidframe and a landing gear connected to said frame for supporting saidhull.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be fullyset forth in the following description made in connection with theaccompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer tosimilar parts throughout the several views and in which:

Fig. 1 is a partial plan view of the aeroplane;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken transversely through one of the wheelreceiving compartments of the hull;

Fig. 3 is a partial longitudinal section taken substantially on line3--3 of Fig. 2 as indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 4 is a partial longitudinal section taken substantially on line 4-4of Fig. l as indicated by the arrow;

Fig. 5 is a partial view in side elevation of a portion of the hull andlanding gear, some parts being broken away and others shown in verticalsection;

Fig. 6 is a vertical section taken on line 6--6 of Fig. 5 as indicatedby the arrows;

Fig. 7 is a partial view similar to Fig. 6 shown on an enlarged scale;

Fig 8 is a view in vertical section through certain parts shown in Fig.5 and shown on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 9 is a vertical section taken substantially on line 95 of Fig. '7as indicated by the arrow;

Fig. 10 is a vertical section taken substantially on line l-H) of Fig.and

Fig. 11 is a horizontal section taken on line IIH of Fig. as indicatedby the arrow.

This application is a division of applicants copending application S. N.586,597, filed January 14, 1932, on Amphibianairplane which matured intoPatent No. 2,003,975 granted June 4,. 1935.

Referring to the drawings, an aeroplane is shown comprising a hull 20..As fully described in said prior application said hull is carried byand suspended from a central main frame 2|, certain parts of which areshown in Figs. 1 and 4. Said hull is fully described in said priorapplication and the same comprises a central watertight compartment aand compartments 291) at each side of compartment 20a. construction ofsaid hull forms no part of the claimed matter in this application, itmay be stated that said hull,comprises longitudinally extending members2llc-and 29d and partition walls 20c and 20], which walls will be formedof some suitable thin material such as plywood. Additional and auxiliarylongitudinally extending members 209' are also shown as well asvertically extending bows 2th and 262'. The bottom of the hull is alsoshown as 207. Bearings 22 are provided on hull 2i] and a tube 23 extendsbetween and through bearings 22, being journaled therein. The bearings22 form part of a plate 22a secured to hull 2B and said bearings havecaps 22?). Plate 22a has a portion or flange 22c extending at rightangles thereto and this forms part of the connecting means between frame2| and the hull, said frame having a flange 2m extending from one of itstubular members which is bolted between flange 22c and another flange24a of a plate 24 also secured to the hull. Bolts 25 and 26 connect theflanges 22c and 24a, some of which extend through the longitudinalmembers of the hull. Plate 24 is additionally secured to a flange orplate 26a also secured to frame 2| as shown in Fig. 4. It is thus seenthat hull 20 is suspended from the main frame and that member or tube 23extends transversely at the top of the hull. Member 23 has securedthereto adjacent either end a pair of tubular members or.

While the specific sockets 2?, these being disposed at the top of thecompartments 261). Members 2'! will be welded or brazed to member 23.Members 28 have their upper ends disposed in and secured in members 27by brazing or by pins 23, or both, and said members have thereonrespectively collars 28a. Members 28 continue below said collars andhave their lower ends received in and slidable in members 33 which areof tubular form, the same having their lower ends bifurcated andembracing flanges am extending centrally respectively of bearings 3!.Bearings 3! have journaled therein the axle 32 of a Wheel 33 shown ashaving a rim 33a on which is mounted the pneumatic tire 332). Members3!] are each divided intermediate their ends and hinged together byhinge 35. of hinge 34 are welded or brazed to the parts of member 3!].Members 38 also have collars 33a.

secured thereto and a plurality of washers 35 are disposed between thecollars 28a and 33a, which washers will be of some resilient materialsuch as rubber. The inner bearing 3! also has secured thereto a rod 35illustrated as of tubular form, the same being welded or otherwisesuitably secured to said bearing 3!. Rod 36 has a hub at its other endjournaled on a stud 31 secured in a bracket 38, in turn secured topartition 29c. Said hub is held in place by a washer 39 secured to stud3'! by a headed bolt or screw 40. An arcuate bar or plate 6! is securedto the outer side of partition 20c by a plurality of rivets 42 and thesame has its lower end bent into U-shape forming a bearing and stop inwhich bearing Bl is received when wheel 33 is in its lowest position.Said member 4! is also curved at its upper end to be engaged by bearing3! and form a stop for the upper position of wheel 33.

Member 23 has secured thereto an upwardly extending arm 43 wlnch ispivotally connected at its upper end to one end of a link 45, which linkis pivotally connected at its other end by a pivot 46 to a screw 4?.Screw 3'! extends through and engages a nut 48 journaled in a bearing 59secured to the top of hull 2D. Nut 48 has flanges engaging each end ofbearing 49 and extends from said bearing in tubular form, the sameextending to and being journaled in another bearing 50 secured to thetop of hull 25. Bearing 50 is of rectangular form in plan and hasjournaled in one end a beveled gear secured to member 48. Gear 5! mesheswith another beveled gear 52 secured to a shaft journaled in one side ofbearing 58, to which shaft is secured a hand crank 53 which is disposedat one side of the central compartment of the hull which at this pointforms the cockpit.

A door 55 is provided to close the bottom of compartment 202), the samebeing hinged by a hinge 56 to the member 200 of the hull. Said door hassecured to its inner side a bracket 5'! comprising closely disposedparallel flanges having slots 51a therein. A lever 58 is pivotallymounted at one end by pivot 59 in a bearing 6!] secured to partition 20cadjacent member 230 of the hull. Lever 58 is curved and has a hub at itsother end disposed and movable between the flanges of bracket 5! asshown in Figs. 5 and 11. A pin 6! is secured in said hub of lever 58 andprojects at each end thereof into the slots 51a substantially fitting insaid slots. Lever 58 is bifurcated at its pivoted end and has disposedon the pivot 59 a pulley 62, bearing 66 having spaced flanges betweenwhich lever 53 is disposed. A flexible member or cable 53 is secured toa pin 64a carried in lever 58 and runs over pulley 62 The parts upwardlybetween the flanges of bearing 60, the same being secured at its upperend to the outer end of an arm 63 which is secured to and projectsradially from member 23. The outer member 30 has secured to its lowerend a bracket 55 having a U-shaped portion in which is disposed a pulley36 journaled on a stud. 6'! secured in bracket 65. A flexible member orcable 58 which may be a rather stifif wire, such as a woven wire cable,runs over the top of pulley 6B and under a pair of pulleys 63 disposedat either side of pulley 66 when the parts are in the position shown inFig. 5, said pulleys '69 being rotatably mounted in small bearings it!secured to the hull member 20d. Cable 38 extends from pulleys 59 overother pulleys rotatably mounted in small brackets 12 secured to theinner side of member 23d. The ends of cable 58 are secured to headedpins 73 arranged to travel in slots 74a formed in the spaced parallelflanges of brackets 14 secured to the inner side of door 55. A tube 75of U-shape is secured in each compartment 26b. Said tube is secured tothe outer side of partition 206 by a clip bracket "E5. The rear end oftube 15 is disposed a slight distance above the bottom of compartment20b or above door 55. The forward end of the tube has a flange 75athereon and the opening in the tube alines with an opening 20k in thebottom 23y of compartment 201) in front of the door 55. A spout Tlhaving a rearwardly directed open end is disposed beneath opening 20kalining therewith and having a flange 'l'la disposed against the underside of bottom 297' and connected through said bottom to flange 150. bycircumferentially spaced bolts I8.

In operation, when the plane is to be used to land on the ground, thewheels 33 will be in the position shown in Fig. 5. They can be moved tothis position by the operator turning crank 53, thus rotating beveledgears 5! and 52 and member 48. Rotation of member 48 moves screw t!rearwardly, oscillating arm 44 and member 23. Members 28 and 33 areoscillated with member 23 and the wheels move downwardly until bearings3! engage the lower ends of members 4!. At this time the parts of member30 are in longitudinal alinement and any upward thrust on the wheels 33is transmitted directly to members 33 and to resilient washers 35 bycollars 33a. The thrust is transmitted directly to the frame 2! throughmember 23 which is directly connected to the frame. As member 23 isoscillated by arm Ml arm. 64 is also moved in a clockwise direction thuspulling upwardly on cable 63. This oscillates lever 58 about pivot 59swinging the same This movement of downwardly and inwardly. lever 53through the pin 6! acting on bracket 5! swings open the door 55, thesame being moved to the position shown in Figs. 6 and '7 where it issubstantially parallel to the bottom 207' of the hull.

If the aeroplane is to make a landing upon water the operator willrotate crank 53, thus rotating nut 48 and moving screw 4! forwardly.This swings arm M and oscillates member 23. Members 28 and 30 are thusswung in a counterclockwise direction and pull upon bearings 3!, causingthe same to swing upwardly with rod 36 about the axis of stud 37. Thewheels are thus swung upwardly until bearings 3! engage the upper endsof bars 4!. In this movement it will be seen that the parts of member3!! swing about the axis of hinge 34 as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5.When member 23 is oscillated arm 64 is also oscillated thus slacking thecable 63. Door fit) tends to move downwardly by gravity and thus partlycloses. As members 38 are swung upwardly pulley 66 is moved forwardlythus pulling on cable 68. Pins '53 move along in the slots 14a and afterthe wheel 33 is sufficiently raised pins I3 act on brackets 14 to movedoor 55 upwardly to closed position. Pins 13 as door 55 approachesclosed position again move outwardly or toward the outer ends of slotsMa and when the door is tightly closed pins 73 are in the outer ends ofslots I la. as shown in Fig. 10. The wheels are now disposed completelyin the compartments till) and will not engage the water when the planelands.

When the plane alights on the water the water will enter thecompartments 2% substantially to the depth of the draft of the plane,such water being indicated as 80 in Fig. 3. As the plane moves forwardon the water after the doors 55 are closed, the water will be siphonedout through the pipe 15. This action will take place since there will bean area of low pressure in the rear of spout Ti and the water will bedrawn through pipe 15 as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 3. The amountof water in compartments 2% will therefore be materially lessened as theplane moves forward.

From the above description it is seen that applicant has provided a verysimple and efiicient structure of aeroplane provided with means forlanding either on the ground or on the water. The wheels can be easilyand quickly projected or retracted and as described the doors 55 will besimultaneously operated. The landing gear is effectively supported fromvthe frame to which all main stresses are transmitted.

It will, of course, be understood that various changes may be made inthe form, details, arrangement and proportions of the parts, withoutdeparting from the scope of applicant's invention, which generallystated, consists in a device capable of carrying out the objects aboveset forth in the parts and combinations of parts disclosed and definedin the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull having a compartment atone side thereof having an open bottom, a door hinged to close saidbottom, a wheel arranged to be partly disposed in said compartment or tobe moved upwardly to be disposed entirely in said compartment and meansfor closing said door including a flexible cable attached to said door,guide means for said cable and means movable with and carried by saidwheel for moving said flexible cable.

2. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull, said hull having acompartment at one side, a wheel for supporting said hull, meanscarrying said wheel and swingable therewith to swing said wheel intosaid compartment, a door for closing the bottom of said compartment, amember oscillatable in said hull to which said means is connected forswinging said means and wheel, means manipulated by the operator forswinging said member, a lever pivoted at the side of said compartmentand adjacent the lower end thereof connected to said door for swingingthe same, a flexible means connected to said lever and to said lastmentioned member for swinging said lever, a second flexible membersecured to said door for moving the same to closed position and meansmovable with said wheel over which said second flexible member moves topull upon said flexible member and close said door.

3. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull having a compartmenttherein, a wheel for supporting said hull, means carrying said wheel andswingable therewith to swing said wheel into said compartment, saidcompartment having an open lower end, a door for closing said open endof said compartment, a bracket secured to said door having a slottherein, a second bracket secured to the wall of said compartment at itslower end, an arm pivoted to said second bracket and extending to saidfirst mentioned bracket, said arm having means secured thereto anddisposed in said slot and means manipulable by the operator for swingingsaid arm to cause the same to swing said door to open position.

4. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull having a compartmenttherein, a wheel for supporting said hull, means carrying said wheel andswingable therewith to swing said wheel into said compartment, saidcompartment having an open lower end, a door hinged to said hull aboutan axis extending longitudinally thereof for closing said compartment,brackets extending transversely of said door adjacent its ends, aflexible member having ends secured in said brackets respectively,pulleys carried by said door adjacent its hinged side over which saidflexible member runs and a pulley carried by said wheel over which saidflexible member runs whereby when said wheel is swung into saidcompartment said door will be closed.

5. The structure set forth in claim 4, said brackets having elongatedslots therein and members movable in said slots to which the ends ofsaid flexible member are secured.

6. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull having a compartment atone side having an open bottom, a door hinged to close said bottom, awheel constructed and arranged to be moved into said compartment orprojected therefrom, a flexible member connected at its ends to spacedpoints on said door, means carried by said wheel over which saidflexible member passes so that as said wheel is moved into saidcompartment, said door is swung to closed position.

7. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull having a compartment atone side having an open bottom, a door hinged to close said bottom, awheel constructed and arranged to be moved into said compartment orprojected therefrom, a flexible cable secured at its ends to spacedpoints on said door, a pulley carried by said wheel over which saidcable runs between its ends and guide pulleys on said wheel and door forsaid cable whereby when said wheel is moved into said compartment saiddoor is swung to closed position.

8. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull, said hull having acompartment at one side, a wheel for supporting said hull, a shaftextending transversely of said hull, a compartment adjacent the topthereof, a pair of struts secured at one end of said shaft and havingbearings at their other ends in which said wheel is mounted between saidstruts, each of said struts comprising a pair of hinged sections havingabutting ends, hinges connecting said sections, a shock absorber carriedby each. strut above the hinge thereof, a rod secured to one of saidbearings and swingable about a fixed axis at its other end, a fixedguide concentric with said axis for guiding said wheel, an arm securedto said shaft and means manipulable by the operator connected to saidarm for oscillating said shaft and swinging said struts and wheelwhereby said sections are folded about said hinges and said wheel isswung into said compartment.

9. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull, said hull having acompartment at one side adapted to receive a wheel, a door hinged at oneside of said compartment about an axis extending generallylongitudinally of said aeroplane, a member pivoted at one side of saidcompartment adjacent the bottom thereof and connected at one end to saiddoor, means manipulable by the operator and comprising flexible meanssecured to said member for oscillating the same and moving said door toopen position, a second flexible means secured to said door and meansfor moving said flexible means to move said door to closed position.

10. An aeroplane having in combination, a hull, said hull having acompartment at one side, a wheel for supporting said hull, a shaftextending transversely of said hull and said compartment adjacent thetop thereof, a pair of struts secured at one end to said shaft andhaving bearings at their other ends in which said wheel is mountedbetween said struts, each of said struts comprising a pair of hingedsections having abutting ends, hinges connecting said sections, a shockabsorber carried by each strut above the hinge thereof, an arm securedto said shaft, means manipulable by the operator connected to said armfor oscillating said shaft and swinging said struts and wheel to causesaid struts to lift and swing said wheel into said compartment, a rodsecured to one of said bearings and swingable about a fixed axis at itsother end, said rod extending substantially at right angles to saidstruts when the wheel is in projected position and swingingsubstantially-through 90 degrees When the wheel is swung into saidcompartment, a guide for said Wheel and means carried on said lastmentioned bearing for engaging said guide.

RUFUS R. RAND, JR.

